Phases
by fabled wings
Summary: Set between episode 79 and 80. Kotori encounters Shark after school and they have a little chat. Friendship fic, hinted Skyshipping.


Phases

Kotori rarely found herself leaving the school grounds alone - Yuuma and his inane chatter usually accompanied her as they walked down the streets, but Yuuma had to stay back for a supplementary class since he had been getting constant C's in mathematics – if only he put in as much effort in schoolwork as he did in duelling – while Tetsuo and the others had gathered across town for duelling practice.

Kotori let out a wistful sigh as she paused in the middle of the bridge beyond the school gate. She wasn't a duelist, but sometimes she fantasized about picking up a deck, instead of merely cheering Yuuma from the sidelines and making sure he did not get himself into more peril than he's already exposed to on a daily basis. Whenever she saw him absorbed in one of his duels, however, she can feel his sheer exhilaration of the moment exuding off him, whether or not he was losing or winning. Yuuma always saw duelling as a connection between two duelists' hearts – Kotori wished, for once, to be able to feel that same quickening heartbeat with the same intimate proximity.

The evening was quiet, the rush of vehicles muffled in the distance. Kotori whistled softly as she walked on the familiar route home, finding the lack of bustle from her friends hard to get used to, but pleasant in any case. The cityscape seemed to stand out more as Kotori's eyes wandered idly. Heartland City was beautiful, but it's not often she gets the chance to appreciate the city she grew up in like this on her lone self, without any interruptions.

The sound of footsteps intruded her thoughts; she paused mid-step, turning slightly to see who else from school could be taking the same path.

Her eyes widened a fraction. "Shark?"

The second-year was a few yards behind, and only glanced at her for a second before acknowledging Kotori with a nod. His pace never faltered as he moved closer and past Kotori; she picked up her own pace to catch up with him.

"... I thought you usually rode your motorcycle home," Kotori started, abruptly realising why it seemed odd to her that Shark was on foot.

"Rio's back in school now, I don't need it all the time," Shark replied without a hitch. Kotori smiled.

"It's great, isn't it, now that Rio's fully recovered... why isn't she with you?"

"She has some papers to fill out at the admin's. I offered to help her, but she's just so stubborn about handling things herself and pushed me out of the office."

"Sounds like she's settling in fine."

"What about Yuuma?" Shark continued; of course, Yuuma was the closest to Shark, it made sense that he would ask after him. Kotori wasn't quite as familiar with him – not yet, anyway. "He's usually with you."

"Supplementary classes."

"… Heh. Figures."

It wasn't often that Kotori found herself alone with Shark – Yuuma would usually be around as well, or Rio, now that she was back in school. Rio was really an admirable person, and Kotori's glad to find someone she could look up to in her. Despite being Shark's twin, Rio had a much warmer disposition, despite being the wielder of an ice deck, and was a girl with utmost confidence in herself. She was also another girl friend Kotori could talk to; hanging out with Yuuma and the other guys too much could be taxing, what with the silly antics they got up to sometimes.

Yet here she was, walking home with another one of the boys. This was one of the few times they found themselves alone in each other's company, now that it occurred to Kotori. Shark had decreased his stride to match hers. Kotori spoke to fill the silence that had settled around them once again.

"A lot of things have happened, huh?" she said. "So much has changed these past months…"

"I guess."

"There's Astral, the WDC, and all that we found out during the tournament… sometimes I wonder if it's all just a huge adventure I've made up in my head."

Shark grunted, a noncommittal noise.

"It's all so… unexpected," Kotori continued, a little worried that she may be blabbering, but she felt it was better than stifling silence. "Months ago, I didn't think that we could be walking together like this, Shark. You did use to be a school bully…"

Shark's eyebrows creased a little then; Kotori bit her bottom lip. She probably should not have mentioned that period of Shark's past, since it must be a time he wasn't proud of. If it weren't for Yuuma's involvement, Kotori wondered how far down that path Shark would tread. "I-It's a good thing that you aren't now, of course!" Kotori said, laughing dryly in an attempt to salvage her words. "You were kind of scary then-"

"How so?"

"Eh?" Shark had raised an eyebrow, but he only had mild curiosity in his eyes. Kotori heaved an inward sigh of relief. He didn't seem offended. "Mind if I'm frank, then?" Shark only shrugged. Kotori took this as a cue to continue speaking. "You used to look… really mean, and a little intimidating, with your previous reputation and all, and you had all those other guys with you – but Yuuma, after the first time you two duelled, I think he saw something in you that made him chase after you so fervently."

"Yuuma's… insistent, that's for sure," he nodded, a smile creeping onto his face. "It's okay to talk about it, I won't bite."

"But isn't that one of your natures as a shark?" Kotori couldn't help but quip. "You sure had a bite when we were in Heartland Tower, yelling at all of us…"

"I was worried, okay?" Shark rebutted, indignant. "Yuuma's life was in danger."

"I was worried too, but you didn't see me losing my temper," Kotori argued, cheeks slightly puffed. "Beneath that tough exterior of yours, though, I think you're actually much nicer guy than you let on."

Shark grimaced. "That's…"

"Not used to being called nice?" Kotori grinned up at him. She was glad, to be honest, that they seemed comfortable enough with each other, despite not knowing each other well at all. In a way, it could be said that they were connected through duelling as well; Kotori always made sure she was by Yuuma when he duelled – he still had reckless tendencies, and Astral could only do so much, being an otherworld entity with a compromised existence in their world. She had to be there, it's what she told herself, ever since she first made friends with Yuuma all those years ago, a stubborn little boy that dared to harbour great ambitions, despite being mocked for it. Kotori admired his courage and determination, always did.

She wouldn't have fallen for him otherwise.

She's glad he's been making more friends; she's especially grateful that Shark is one of them, someone else who could also be close by, who could be there to lend a few duelling tips, someone who saw Yuuma as an equal. Yuuma was someone who, at present, couldn't be left alone. Support was important to him, however adamant Yuuma was about being able to take care of himself.

They were nearing the subway station, the sun already halfway below the horizon. The sounds of traffic and evening bustle grew louder as they continued down their path, falling in step with each other. A cool breeze ruffled the two students' hair. "You know, Yuuma's able to see things normal people can't – in that first duel you guys had, he must have saw something in you. It's one of Yuuma's unique points I guess – he never wants to see someone hurting inside."

_Because he knows what it's like to be alone, so he didn't want to see you alone too,_ was what Kotori wanted to say, but some things weren't in her place to talk about.

"If it weren't for Yuuma, things could have turned out a lot worse, huh?" Kotori whispered.

"… Yeah. Yuuma's really something."

Kotori wondered if her upperclassman was aware, but a small smile had begun to form on Shark's face. It was rare to see him smile; he used to have a perpetual frown plastered on his face, a cold mask to keep people away from him. Nowadays, with Yuuma and Rio around, it didn't take much to fetch a smile from him.

"You should smile more, you know."

"Rio keeps saying this, and now you too," Shark muttered with the slight hint of exasperation in his tone. "What is it with you girls?"

"But smiling is good, isn't it?" Kotori demonstrated her point as she looked up at him. "And this could be just my opinion, but I think you look a lot better smiling."

Shark disputed her by turning his lips back downwards with a conscious movement of his jaw. "That's… stupid."

"It isn't!" Her lips formed into a petulant pout. "You guys are so stubborn."

"You girls are equally persistent."

"At least you're not denying it!"

Kotori giggled, she couldn't help it. She could see why Rio loved teasing her brother so much now. She recalled the little titbit Rio revealed the day before during lunch, and the image of Shark running out of the house in pyjamas resurfaced in her head. She only laughed harder at that.

"What's wrong with you now?" Shark half-growled.

"N-Nothing…" Kotori tried to suppress her giggles with some success. "I was just thinking about something funny."

"… About me?"

"… You shouldn't assume things."

At a crossroads, they stopped by the pedestrian light. The streetlights were flicking on, now that the sun had fully set. Shark spoke up.

"I'm going that way," he gestured off to the left. "What about you?"

"That way," Kotori pointed in the opposite direction.

When would be the next time they were able to speak freely to each other again, just the two of them? Shark, Kotori found, wasn't a difficult person to hang out with, whether or not he agreed. Just a few months ago, he was a person she would avoid with a wide berth, but she's glad that things have changed so much since then, and for the better.

"Rio tells me you want to learn how to duel?"

Kotori nodded. "Duelling seems really exciting. Watching you, Yuuma and the others duel makes me want to try it myself! Rio said she's willing to show me the ropes."

"Don't be scared off by her. She can be a strict teacher."

"She does look like one."

"… I can give you some advice too, if you need it."

Kotori stared at him, eyes shining. For Ryoga Kamishiro to offer her duelling advice-

"Wow- I mean, thank you! I really appreciate it."

"We're-"

A car honked as the traffic light had turned green, interrupting Shark from finishing what he wanted to say, but as they walked across the road, Kotori thought that he only didn't know how to say the next part of his sentence.

"What were you saying, Shark?" Kotori asked once they reached the other side, facing each other. "That car was pretty loud."

"I was saying, that…"

He seemed a little uneasy with himself, looking off to the side as he searched for the words he wanted to say. Or maybe he had already found the right words, but found it difficult to voice them out. Kotori shrugged. It didn't really matter now, did it?

"I'm glad we're friends, Shark."

Yuuma was the one Shark had acknowledged, but somewhere in her heart, Kotori had found herself referring to Shark as a friend too, and Kaito as well to a certain degree. She wondered if she had been too presumptuous, and she knew she was a little naïve, but it couldn't hurt to be friends, or at least comrades, right? They _had_ fought together for a common goal at some point.

"Yeah, sure…" Shark glanced down at Kotori, jaw tight, but his eyes swam with something Kotori couldn't quite decipher, but he did not disagree with her words. Kotori took it that he didn't mind being referred to as her friend. She clasped her hands together before her chest.

"I'll see you in school tomorrow, then?"

Shark smiled again, for the second time that evening, this time directed at her. Kotori felt reassured at the sight of it. He made the first move to separate. "I'll see you then, Kotori."

"See you."


End file.
